Cloth-printing machine



(No Model.)

H. E. GREEN.

GLOTH PRINTING MACHINE.

Patented Se 6& Km

N. PETERS, Phulo-Lilhcgnpllur, Walhingtnn. ac)

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE,

HIRAM GREEN, OF LOVELL, ASSIGNOR TO HIMSELF, AND HENRY EDlVARDS, OFANDOVER, MASSACHUSETTS.

CLOTH-PRINTING MACHINE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 349,037, datedSeptember 14, 1886.

Application filed November 30, 1885. Serial No. 154,251. (No model.)

T all whom it Tit/00y concern:

Be it known that I, HIRAM E. GREEN, a citizen of the United States,residing at Lowell, in the county of Middlesex and Commonwealth ofMassachusetts, have invented a certain new and useful Improvement inCloth-Printing Machines, of which-the following is a specification.

My invention relates to cloth-printing machines ;and it consists in thedevices and.eon1 binations hereinafter described and claimed, the objectof which is, by causing the rotary brushes which apply the color to theprinting-rolls to have a traversing motion in the direction of theiraxes. to prevent a blurring of the colors printed-by the printing-rollsafter the first printing-roll, and to prevent the colors from cakinginto the engraved parts of the printing-rolls.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure l is a longitudinal section of apart of the frame of a cloth-printing machine, showing an end elevationof the main cylinder, a side elevation of the nips or pillow-blocks andad- 2 justing or -nipping screws, also showing two printing-rolls incross-section, and two color-furnishing brushes in crosss'ection, thelower brush being represented in section on the line :0 x in Fig. 2, andthe upperbrush, or brush at the right, being represented in section onthe line y 3 in said Fig. 2; Fig. 2, a vertical section through thecolor-box in the axis of the color-furnishing brush, said brush beingshown in side elevation, together with its shaft and earn, a part of theframe of the machine and part of a finger supporting bracket being alsoin cross-section, the finger or leader being in front elevation, thedotted lines in this figure showing how the finger or leader may besupported by the color-box;

Fig. 2, an enlarged section on the line y g in- Fig. 1 1 a The frame A,main cylinder 13, pillow-block O, the engraved printingrolls D D, thejournals of which turn in said pillowblocks O, the nipping or adjustingscrews E, which are turned up to force the pillow-block toward thecenter of the frame, and thereby to nip the work between the maincylinder B and the printing-rolls D D, and the color-boxes F F,

are all of the usual construction and operation as used in machines forprinting cloth, leather, wall-papers, and similar articles. Thecolorfurnishing brush G is also of the usual construction, (except ashereinafter specified,) being a cylinder, g, of wood, from which projeetbristles g radially in the usual manner, and having metallic journalsg,which turn in metallicjournal-boxesff, secured to the ends of thecolor-box F or F in any well-known manner, to allow the working-surfaceof said brush G to dip into the color contained in the color-born Thereis a brush, G, and a colorbox for each printing-roll, the brush beingrotated usually by frictional contact with the printing-roll, anddepositing color lifted from the color-box upon said roll. Ordinarilythe brush is prevented from motion in the direction of its axis byitsjournal-boxes projecting into the color -bOX against the ends of thebrush proper, g.

The difficnlty experienced with the brush I as commonly used is, thatthe wet color applied by the first printing-roll marks off or is partlyleft on the second printingroll on the unengraved parts thereof, so thatwhen the last-named roll has made 'a complete revolution it will befound that portions of the first color have been wiped by the doctor(which reciprocates against the surface of said second print-roll) fromthe unengraved parts of said second roll into the engraved parts thereofintended to print thesecond color. To take a simple instance, forillustration, suppose it be desired to print the cloth in two colors-adark ground and narrow yellow stripes running lengthwise of the cloth.The first printing-roll would be provided with as many engraved annulardepressions as there were yellow stripes required, and said first roll,being supplied with yellow color in the usual manner, would print asmany yellow stripes as there were engraved annular depressions on saidfirst roll. The second printing-roll would be engraved over its entiresurface, except that there would be left unengraved on said second rollas many annular spaces as there were engraved rings on the firstprintingroll, the unengraved annular spaces on the second roll beingequal in numher and width to the annular engraved spaces on the firstroll, and being at the same distance apart. The two printing-rolls beingarranged to register perfectly to bring the unengravcd rings in contactwith the parts of the cloth previously printed by the firstprinting-roll, the second roll would print the ground or second colorupon thepreviously unprinted portions of the cloth; but in practice someof the wet yellow would come off from the cloth onto the raised orunengraved portions of the second roll. The doctor, reciprocating in theusual manner, as above stated, would then wipe some of the yellow on theunengraved parts of the second roll over the sharp edges of saiduncngraved parts into the engraved parts thereof, and the revolution ofthe second roll would print upon the cloth the ground color and also theyellow color improperly mixed with it at the edges of the unengravedparts. The result would be that. instead of clean yellow stripes withweltdelined edges upon a dark ground, we should have bright yellowstripes of the'full width intended, but provided with ragged dirtyyellowish edges.

Another diftieulty frequently experienced is, that the color applied bythe colorfnrnishing brush becomes partly dried or caked into theengraved parts of the printing-roll, thus, to the extent to which thecaking takes place, tending to make a smooth printing-roll of uniformdiameter, from which the color would be entirely wiped by the doctor, sothat the parts upon which the color dries and fills up the engravingwill not take the color and print it upon the cloth.

To remedy these difficulties, particularly the one last named, thecolor-furnishingbrush has sometimes been made-to have a positive motionin a reverse direction, to rub against the printing-roll. instead ofbeing driven by frictional contact with said roll, and clothprintingmachines are usually supplied with an attachment consisting of a bracketadapted to be readily attached to the frame of the machine andsupporting the intermediate gear, which, by so attaching said bracket,is made to engage with a gear on the shaft of the printing-roll and withanother gear on the shaft of the brush. Driving the brush in thismanner, however, wears the engraved surface of the printing-roll muchmore rapidly. and is not completely successful inobviating thedifficulties named.

I provide means of giving to the brush 6- a traversing motion in thedirection ofits length, as follows: I leave spaces between the innerends of the journal-boxcsj" and the brush proper, 1 so that saidjournal-boxes do not interfere with the sliding of the brush endwise,and I make the brush shaft or journals y long enough to allow the brushto traverse without being drawn out of the journal-boxes. Outside of thecolor box I secure to the brush-shaft a cam, II, provided with acamgroove, h. A bracket, I, which may be socurcd by bolts or screws 2' ito the frame of the machine, as shown by full lines in Fig. 2, or to theend of the eolonbox, as shown partly by dotted lines in said Fig. 2, isprovided with a finger or leader, 2', which enters said cam-groove h,and, being stationary, causes said cam and brush to have a reciprocatingmotion in the direction of their axes when said brush is revolved. Thebrushinay be revolved in the usual manner by frictional contact with theprinting-roll, or by means, now sometimes used and well known and not ofmy invention, for giving a positive motion to said brush. Giving to thebrush G a combined rotary and cuilwise-reciprocating mo tion causes thebristles of the brush thoroughly to scrub out the partly-dried colorsfrom the engraved parts of the whiting-roll, and thoroughly mixes thecolor which marks off from the cloth with the color being applied to theprintingroll, so to leave no perceptible blur at the edges of the secondcolor.

I claim as my iuventiou 1. The combination of an engraved printing-roll,a color-box, a color-furnishing brush located in said color-box andadapted to be rotated in contact with the engraved surface of said rolland free to move in either direction in the line of its axis, and means,substantially as described, of causing said brush, when rotated aboutits axis, to have a reciprocating endwise motion, as and for the purposespecified.

2. The combination of the engraved printing-roll, the color-furnishingbrush adapted to be rotated in contact with the surface of saidprinting-roll, and provided with a shaft free to slide in its bearings,a color-box, the bearings of said brush supported upon the ends of saidcolor-box, a stationary bracket provided with a finger, at 1 (I a camsecu red to said brushshaft and adapted to engage with said finger tocause said brush when rotated to have a reciprocating endwisc motion, asand for the purpose specified.

3. The combination of the engraved print ing-roll, the color-furnishingbrush adapted to be rotated by frictional contact with said roll, andprovided with a shaft, the colorbox, bearings supported upon the ends ofsaid color-box, in which bearings said shaft is free to turn and toslide cndwise, and a cam secured to said shaft, and a stationary bracketprovided with a finger adapted to engage said cam and to cause saidbrush, when said roll is rotated in contact therewith, to have areciprocating cndwise motion, as and for the purpose specified.

lllRAM E. GREFN. \Vilnesses:

ALLER'I M. Moonn, GERTRUDE M. DAY.

ICC

